1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a device for cutting bone, and more particularly, to an apparatus for cutting dowels from a bone mass.
2. Description of the Related Art
Many osteopathic surgical procedures employ plugs or dowels cut from bone as protheses. Devices for cutting and forming plugs or dowels from bone are known in the art and include both hand-held and platform-mounted configurations. An example of a platform-mounted device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,416,278 to Miller which includes a die carried on a plunger that is housed in a sleeve. A pivoting handle which takes the form of a lever is connected to the plunger to effect the movement thereof relative to the sleeve.
Another apparatus for forming bone plugs which has a platform-mounted configuration is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,559,936 to Hill. This device has a cup-like fixture for supporting the bone from which the plug is cut, and includes a cylindrical cutting tool which rotates axially and translates longitudinally with respect to the bone supporting fixture during a plug forming procedure.
An example of a hand-held apparatus for removing a core from a bone mass is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,649,918 to Pegget et al. and includes a cylindrical member having a honed cutting edge which is axially rotated to cut the bone core. A similar device is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,798,213 to Doppelt which is configured to obtain a bone biopsy specimen. The device includes an introducer, a trocar, a manually operated cylindrical cutting drill, and a plunger for removing the bone specimen from the drill.
Another prior art device utilized to cut dowels from bone is manufactured by Cloward.TM. and is configured to be mounted to a conventional hand-held surgical drill. The Cloward.TM. device is illustrated in FIGS. 1-4 of the subject application and is described in detail hereinbelow.
As will be discussed, the complex construction of the Cloward.TM. device encumbers its disassembly, and it is therefore difficult to clean and sterilize after use. It would be beneficial to provide a dowel cutter for use with a powered surgical drill that can be easily disassembled for cleaning. The subject invention describes such a device.